Jerusalem & The Three Conflicts: The Mystery of the Everlasting Kingdom Explained

By B. Lising

This book is about the heavenly kingdom, and this glorious eternal kingdom has a name: Jerusalem. It is about the gospel and the grand scheme of things. Here we will connect all the dots, and we will be able to see the big picture. There is only one story to tell, and two witnesses were chosen. There is only one prophecy but three prophetic instructions, and the completion will take seven thousand years.
The gospel is not just the power of God for salvation, but also a complete message that can provide answers to all suitable questions. The gospel is the one and only connection we have from eternity. This means that the only way we can know our origin and purpose is to see the whole account of the gospel. The initial fulfilment of the gospel is the First Coming of the Lord Jesus, the middle fulfilment is the Holy Spirit, and the completion is the new Jerusalem (in sequence with the Second Coming). Knowing the end part is imperative to understanding the middle part and the beginning. As affirmed in Scripture, the new Jerusalem is the end part and the final stage of our foretold journey.
When preaching the gospel, churches today rarely mention the new Jerusalem, if they mention it at all. It is true that the Lord Jesus is the center of the gospel, but we also need to know that the reason the only begotten Son of God had to go through all the sufferings was for us to become part of the new Jerusalem. This is why the Lord Jesus, after His resurrection, needed to leave His disciples and return to the Father. He must do something necessary before coming back for the Church. This is in relation to the new Jerusalem.
What then is the connection between the new Jerusalem and the Gospel? This is a very serious question. Not knowing the link between the two is also a very serious issue. In contrast, knowing the connection will help us discover our beginning and our purpose. If the new Jerusalem is the end, then the first Jerusalem is the starting point. The new Jerusalem is, in fact, the re-establishment of the first (heavenly) Jerusalem. Does this mean that something happened to the first one so there was a need to create a new one? We can know this if we see the entire gospel account.
The Gospel is all about Jerusalem, which was conquered and enslaved by Canaan, Egypt, and Babylon. But what do these three conflicts represent? Knowing the answer to this question will help us to understand the mystery of the Everlasting Kingdom, the gospel, and the grand scheme of things. In eternity past, the first Jerusalem was brought to ruin because of the Canaan conflict. In eternity future, God's promise of restoration is New Jerusalem. But first we needed a temporary escape, which is Egypt (the inside of time). Inside of time, the Babylon conflict would be the figurative representation of the Canaan conflict.
It is no easy task to put together the universal truth of God's word and what it means in a way that is approachable for even those with little more than a cursory understanding of the Bible. It can feel overwhelming and uncomfortable, not so much for what it says but for what many of us seem to believe it does not say. B. Lising flips this coin in a way that we understand how there really is nothing that is not said, and the Scripture is only confusing because we have made it feel that way.
The author delves into questions most of us have had at one time or another: Who are we? Where did we come from? What is our purpose in life? According to Lising, the answers to these and similar questions lie in our origins, and our origins are explained in the Bible. The entirety of the Gospel explains where we came from and what our purpose is here on planet Earth, and Revelation is a synopsis of the Bible, housing the answers to the mysteries and questions we have while revealing the grand scheme of things.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Mar 7, 2024
• ISBN: 9798350922653

Book preview

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© B. Lising 2024

ISBN: 979-8-35092-264-6 eBook ISBN 979-8-35092-265-3

All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version (NIV) © International Bible Society 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. [Biblica]. Scripture passages are copied directly from the website https://biblehub.com/niv/.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation (NLT). Scripture passages are copied directly from the website https://biblehub.com/nlt/.

A number of statements or paragraphs are taken from the books Back to Where We Came From—Our Foretold Journey © B. Lising 2020 and Laodicea—Why the World Is Not Yet Ready for the Second Coming © B. Lising 2015.

About the Author

B. Lising got his first copy of the Bible at the age of fourteen. The year was 1986, and after only twelve months, he had read the Old Testament once and the New Testament twice. He did not understand much then, but he still loves to read Scripture.

Three decades later, he wrote his first book, Laodicea—Why the World Is Not Yet Ready for the Second Coming. His second book, Back to Where We Came From—Our Foretold Journey, earned him distinction as an award-winning author. These articulate and well-presented manuscripts will provide readers with a clear understanding of the origin of humankind as well as the blueprint to prepare for the Second Coming.

B. Lising believes in the perfect consistency of Scripture—that all books of the Bible hold only a single message. He is also convinced that the last book is a summary of the whole Bible. The book of Revelation connects all the dots and reveals the big picture to us.

B. Lising is an engineer by profession and currently lives with his beloved wife and four wonderful children.

Dedicated to my beloved wife,

Maria Lourdes

And to my wonderful children,

Eleazar

Eleakim

Eleajoy

Eleagem

They are the precious companions God has given to me in this temporary world.

Table of Contents

Introduction: God Is in Full Control

Chapter 1: First Jerusalem

Chapter 2: Jerusalem Inside Canaan

Chapter 3: Jerusalem Inside Egypt

Chapter 4: Jerusalem Inside Babylon

Chapter 5: The New Jerusalem

Conclusion: All According to God’s Perfect Plan

Introduction

God Is in Full Control

One Prophecy—Two Witnesses

The Apostle John wrote:

Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation, tribe, language and people. (Rev. 14:6 NIV)

The Lord Jesus said:

And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. (Matt. 24:14 NIV)

This book is about the heavenly kingdom, and this glorious eternal kingdom has a name: Jerusalem. It is about the gospel and the grand scheme of things. Here we will connect all the dots, and we will be able to see the big picture.

There is only one story to tell, and two witnesses were chosen. There is only one prophecy but three prophetic instructions, and the completion will take seven thousand years.

The gospel is not just the power of God for salvation but also a complete message that can provide answers to all suitable questions. The gospel is the one and only connection we have from eternity. This means that the only way we can know our origin and purpose is to see the whole account of the gospel.

The initial fulfilment of the gospel is the First Coming of the Lord Jesus, the middle fulfilment is the Holy Spirit and the completion is the new Jerusalem (in sequence with the Second Coming). Knowing the end part is imperative to understanding the middle part and the beginning. And as affirmed in Scripture, the new Jerusalem is the end part and the final stage of our foretold journey.

When preaching the gospel, churches today rarely mention the new Jerusalem, if they mention it at all. It is true that the Lord Jesus is the center of the gospel, but we also need to know that the reason the only begotten Son of God had to go through all the sufferings was for us to become part of the new Jerusalem. This is why the Lord Jesus, after His resurrection, needed to leave His disciples and return to the Father. He must do something necessary before coming back for the Church. This is in relation to the new Jerusalem.

What then is the connection between the new Jerusalem and the gospel? This is a very serious question. Not knowing the link between the two is also a very serious issue. In contrast, knowing the connection will help us discover our beginning and our purpose. If the new Jerusalem is the end, then the first Jerusalem is the starting point. The new Jerusalem is, in fact, the re-establishment of the first (heavenly) Jerusalem. Does this mean that something happened to the first one so there was a need to found a new one? We can know this if we see the entire gospel account.

But how can we see the complete gospel account? Making known the gospel is the work of the Father, the Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit. God as one has been constantly advancing the gospel. Scripture states that God had decided to make known everything to us because of one reason—friendship. We are no longer like servants who do not know our master’s affairs.

You Are a Friend of God

The Lord Jesus said:

I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. (Jn. 15:15 NIV)

How blessed were the first disciples. The Lord Jesus called them friends, and because of this, they were able to hear face to face the complete message from eternity. Notice the word everything from the above passage; no information was withheld from them. Everything that they needed to know, as in everything, was made known to them at that time. They were able to see the big picture of our great restoration.

Friendship is a significant part of the gospel. The greatest love proclaimed by the Lord Jesus in Scripture is to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. Not only did He declare it, He also demonstrated it. He revealed the highest form of love by laying down His life for those He called friends.

To emphasize, it is because of this friendship that we are able to know the complete account of the gospel. Our Creator knows everything about us, and He is more than willing to make Himself known to us because we are His friends.

Friendship is the highest form of relationship. This does not mean we need to prioritize our friends over our family. Every relationship is progressive, and each can reach its highest form. A husband who is able to establish a friendship with his wife means that their relationship has reached its fullest. How beautiful to see the friendship between a father and his son, between a mother and her daughter, between siblings or between colleagues. But what is even more delightful to see is God establishing friendship with His people, the Creator becoming friends with His creations, the King calling His heirs His friends. We are God’s people, the only creations who are fashioned after His image and likeness. And we are His friends whom He has declared as the only heirs to His everlasting kingdom.

Before returning to the Father, the Lord Jesus said:

But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. (Jn. 14:26 NIV)

The Holy Spirit was given the task of teaching God’s people about the Lord Jesus. Just as there is only one way to know the Father, so there is only one way to know Jesus. To be one with the Holy Spirit is to be one with Jesus. This is the work of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit—to know God, for us to understand the eternal gospel.

Again, take note of the words all things and everything in the above passage. The Holy Spirit is our friend who will remind us of everything that the Lord Jesus said. The generations of believers who followed (including our generation) have all been able to see the entire message that the Lord Jesus gave to the first disciples. This is all because of our friendship with God.

But when was the beginning of this friendship? Was it after the foundation of the world or before the beginning of time?

The impression that we were created or have lived with God before the earth existed may not be a mainstream belief. Others may even consider this as heresy. But what if this line of thought could provide a perfectly consistent and satisfying answer? Can we find statements from Scripture that attest this?

The Apostle Paul wrote:

This truth gives them confidence that they have eternal life, which God—who does not lie—promised them before the world began. (Tit. 1:2 NLT)

To whom did God give the promise? To them who were not created yet? One could say that this was God’s foreknowledge and that He had foreseen these things. However, if that were the case, then there would be no need to make a promise—the need would be to make a plan. God did make a plan, but He did so to fulfil His promise.

All insights written in this book were inspired by the certainty that the promise was made before the beginning of time. We will look for answers not only from inside of time but also from before the founding of time (before the world began).

In this book, we will discover the three major prophetic instructions that were given in relation to the gospel. God has already revealed His third and final instruction for us to prepare for the most momentous event, that is, the Second Coming—the fulfilment of the promise.

The Apostle John wrote:

Then I heard another voice from heaven say: Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues. (Rev. 18:4 NIV)

God’s third and final instruction to His people before the Second Coming is to come out of Babylon. To exit Babylon means to enter new Jerusalem. We need to fully understand this final instruction (along with the other two) for us to discover our origin and purpose.

Here also we will realize many virtues of God that were manifested in the kingdom gospel. Knowing God is the key for us to see the big picture of our great restoration. It is indeed the Great Restoration because it involves the reinstatement of the impending kings to their rightful position in the everlasting kingdom.

You Are a King

The Lord Jesus said:

And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me. (Lk. 22:29 NIV)

Yes, you are a king. A kingdom was bestowed on you. And this kingdom of yours is deeply connected to the kingdom that the Father bestowed on the Lord Jesus—a kingdom of kingdoms that will remain forever.

This has been in the blueprint of the Creator right from the outset, long before the world began. But what on earth are you doing here? Why are you on this planet? Why did the Lord Jesus have to be born, live, suffer and die here? After His resurrection, why didn’t He stay here? Why did He have to leave, to go back to the Father, only to return to take us out of here?

So many questions remain unanswered. But our friendship with God and the realization that the Creator designed us to be kings with Him will shed light on these ancient mysteries. Herein we will be looking from a different perspective in order to unlock the answers to these questions. When and where was our beginning? When and where will our journey end? Why were we created? What is the purpose of our life here in this physical world?

It is an undeniable fact that our time on earth is temporary, but how about the certainty of life after life on earth? We may all believe that eternity awaits us, but have we also considered the possibility that our journey may have already started long before the world began?

Again, this is all about the friendship that we have with God and about the kingdom of our Creator. God’s creation is vast, and His dominion knows no bounds. Our Creator, being the only King of Kings, is pleased to make us kings because we are the only ones who were created in His image, after His likeness. We are His children and heirs to His throne. And we will reign with Him forevermore.

But why do we need restoration in the first place? Scripture provides indications that in eternity past, before the creation of the world, there was a turn of events before these would-be kings could take their due positions. We were dethroned prior to our coronation. This was the place where our Creator had to make a remarkably hard choice because it involved an extremely painful sacrifice. Only God can do such a great feat. The Lord Jesus had to chase after us. He became like us (in our fallen state). He left the Father and came to earth to save us. The name of our Lord Jesus means savior; our Creator has become our Savior as well. He did this because we are His friends, His precious co-rulers in His magnificent perpetual kingdom.

Our God Never Errs

King David wrote:

As for God, his way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless. (Ps. 18:30 NIV)

We may be thinking, if God is perfect and powerful, why would He allow terrible things to happen? Why doesn’t He foresee it? Is it beyond His power to stop such things from happening? How can rebellion exist, and how could there be war in heaven? How could some angels agree to plot against God and His beloved children? How come they were triumphant in enticing the heirs of His throne to do something that caused them to fall? Yes, Lucifer, who became Satan, together with one third of the angels, succeeded in separating us from our Creator.

But how could our great King permit such a hideous incident to happen? Can this be considered a mistake on God’s part and that now He is just making an effort to correct that oversight by sending His one and only begotten Son to die on the cross to save us? Is it possible for the perfect God to commit error?

At this point, we are in dire need answers. Thankfully, all we need to do is to look at the big picture to see the reason for all these things. Our God never errs. He saw these things coming. What is this big picture? It is the eternal gospel that is about to be proclaimed throughout the world.

Also in this book, we will find the major stages of our foretold journey. Yes, our journey has already been revealed. These